System and Method for Entertaining and Producing a Fire Show

ABSTRACT

A bowl that is configured for containing liquid such as water has a gas distribution apparatus in the bowl beneath the surface of the liquid and a gas source attached thereto. The gas distribution apparatus includes a movable gas distribution conduit that may be controlled to move in a predetermined pattern so that gas bubbles are emitted in a desired and controlled manner, or alternately, includes a gas distribution plate that causes gas bubbles to emit in a random manner. When the bubbles of gas burst at the surface of the liquid they are ignited, resulting in pleasant displays of flame.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an apparatus for generating a flame, and moreparticularly, the invention relates to an apparatus for generating aflame above a surface of a liquid from a combustible gas that is bubbledthrough the liquid to the surface where it is ignited.

BACKGROUND

In addition to their utilitarian properties, many people find bothflames and fire aesthetically pleasing—hence the ubiquitous use offireplaces and candles and the like. Similarly, water features such asfountains, ponds, streams are also very soothing to many people. It isnot surprising therefore that inventors have combined both fire andwater in a variety of different ways in order to make aestheticallypleasing and entertaining displays and there are numerous technologiesfor facilitating the displays.

There are numerous known systems for generating a flame above a body ofliquid, typically water, for the ornamental and visual effects that canbe created. Many of these are large systems found in resort settingssuch as Las Vegas, and are used primarily for entertainment. Althoughthere are many different types of systems, they generally involve theignition of combustible gas above the surface of the water, and ofteninclude a variety of colored lighting elements and fountains and thelike. Such large-scale entertainment systems are enjoyable but tend tobe complex and expensive, and therefore not applicable to most consumersettings.

The present invention relates to apparatus that is designed primarilyfor the home consumer market and is defined by a bowl that is configuredfor containing liquid such as water, and a gas source combined withapparatus to cause the gas to bubble through the liquid. When thebubbles of gas burst at the surface of the liquid they are ignited,resulting in pleasant displays of flame. The invention comprises variousembodiments that allow for variation in the pattern of gas bubbleignition, the timing of ignition, and may include lights and otherfeatures as detailed below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood and its numerous objects andadvantages will be apparent by reference to the following detaileddescription of the invention when taken in conjunction with thefollowing drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first illustrated embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the embodiment illustratedin FIG. 1, and more particularly, the gas distribution system.

FIG. 4 is a top view of a component of an illustrated embodimentaccording to the present invention that includes a central gas bubbledispersion plate.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the lower side of a gas bubbledispersion plate according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, the use of “a,” “an,” or “the” can referto the plural. All examples given are for clarification only, and arenot intended to limit the scope of the invention.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a first apparatus 2 for entertaining andproducing a fire show comprises a bowl 4 having a lip 6, a support frame8, a dish 10, a plurality of rocks 12 (or other decoration), a verticalgas exhaust 14, lights 16, gas hose 18, electrical apparati 20, and dishsupport 22.

The bowl 4 is a container configured to hold a liquid, such as waterillustrated with dashed lines in FIG. 1, and may take any shape. Forinstance, in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bowl 4, when viewed from above, has theshape of a square, but when viewed from the side (or a cross section)has a concave or partial circle shape. In the embodiment shown in FIG.4, a bowl 104 has a circular shape when viewed from above, although anythe bowl 4 (or 104) may take on any shape such that the bowl can containa liquid. The bowl 4 (and other components of the system 2, includingdish 10, support frame 8, etc.) may further comprise any hard material,such as metal, glass, or ceramic, but may also include plastic, wood, orany other material. While the apparatus 2 burns a combustible fuel, thesystem is safe and there is no risk that the bowl 4, if composed of acombustible material, will burn. In practice it has been found that thepreferred depth of the water held in the bowl should be no less thanabout 6 inches, and no greater than about 12 inches at the positionwhere the gas bubbles burst at the surface of the liquid. It will beappreciated that these dimensions may be varied somewhat withoutadversely affecting the performance of the invention.

The bowl 4 comprises a lip 6 or raised extension that preferably risesbetween 1 and 3 inches above the surface of the water (or liquid)contained in bowl 4. This will help ensure that wind will not extinguishthe fire show occurring above the water surface. The lip 6 may ascend atthe same angle as the edge of bowl 4 or may be substantially vertical orhorizontal (as shown in FIG. 1).

The support frame 8 is configured to support the bowl 4, its liquidcontents, and other elements of the system 2. The support frame 8 may bedesigned to break, collapse, or fall apart when exposed to a weightexceeding a certain limit or threshold, such as 20 or 30 pounds. This isa safety feature to prevent a small child from climbing on the system 2and drowning in the water contained in bowl 4. Any known method forcausing the breakage or collapse of support frame 8 is within the scopeof the present invention, including building the support frame 8 of asufficiently thin gauge metal to allow it to bend when subjected to asufficient force or weight, including scissor-type hinges or othercollapsing or folding apparati, etc.

Dish 10 is connected to the bowl 4 via dish support 22. Dish 10 may havethe shape of a plate, bowl, or surface with a peripheral lip or raisedextension to hold decorative rocks 12 in place. Dish support 22preferably supports the dish 10 above a lower surface of the bowl 4,such as between 0.5 and 2 inches, in order to allow for the placementand movement of rotating bubble disperser 30 (FIG. 3). Decorative rocks12 may include rocks, pebbles, marbles, or any other decorative element.In the center of dish 10 (and decorative rocks 12) protrudes verticalgas exhaust 14 of rotating bubble disperser 30, from which flammable gasis emitted. The vertical gas exhaust 14 may be configured to be above orbelow a surface of the liquid contained in bowl 4, but is preferablyabove. The exhaust 14 may be designed to emit gas at a slow and steadystream to provide for a “pilot light” to keep the fire burning above theliquid surface and to re-ignite the gas should it extinguish.

Lights 16 are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to be located along the diagonalsof square-shaped bowl 4, although they may be located anywhere within oron bowl 4, preferably in such a manner that they are submerged when thebowl 4 is filled with the liquid. Lights 16 may be any known lights,such as incandescent or LED, and may be of any color, combination,intensity, and power consumption. Further, the system 2 may include acomputer processor 23 connected to lights 16 and configured to cause thelights to illuminate in a predetermined fashion, such as in apredetermined sequence, timing, color scheme, changingintensity/brightness, and so forth. Further, the processor 23 may beconfigured to cause the lights to pulsate or change in accordance withmusic that is playing either through the processor or remotely from theprocessor. In the latter case, the processor may include a microphoneand may be designed to sense the music (e.g., a beat to the music) andthen output a signal to the lights 16 in accordance with a preprogrammedassociation with the music (such as flashing the lights or changing thecolors or sequencing the lights to the beat of the music). The system 2may include one or more, preferably at least four, lights 16.

The gas hose 18 connects a source of combustible fuel such as a bottleof propane 19, natural gas, etc., to the rotating bubble disperser 30via one or more valves including a check valve 21 shown schematicallyinline in hose 18. For instance, in addition to the one-way check valve21, another valve may be an on-off valve, another may be a safetyrelease or pressure relief valve, and so forth. Check valve 21 is aconventional backflow preventer valve that allows gas to flow in onedirection through the valve (i.e., from the bottle of propane to thebubble dispenser 30), but will not allow water or other liquid to flowin the reverse direction into the gas supply line 18. In anotherembodiment, another valve may be a variable solenoid valve that may beconnected to or controlled by a computer processor such as processor 23,thus allowing the flow rate of combustible gas through rotating bubbledisperser 30 to be adjusted in real time, such as in accordance with aprogram that depends on music. In other words, in place or in additionto the embodiment in which a computer processor is connected to thelights 16 to cause them to illuminate according to a program thatdepends on the sound or beat of music, the variable solenoid valve maybe connected to the processor and configured to variably open or closeaccording to a program that depends on the sound or beat of music. Sucha valve (or lights 16) may alternatively or in addition be controlled byother factors and sensors, such as a light level, a time of day, a timeof year, a temperature, and so forth. For instance, the variablesolenoid valve may be programmed to open more when the temperature islow in order to provide greater heat of combustion, as well as tocompensate for the fact that the combustible fuel pressure may be lowerwhen the temperature is lower. Further, the lights 16 may be programmedto illuminate when the sun goes down, etc.

Electrical apparati 20 may include a wall outlet plug, batteries,capacitors, wiring, transformers, electrical sparking devices, and soforth. The apparati 20 may be configured to power lights 16, a processor23 (if any), a valve, a combustion ignition system, and so forth.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the system 2 of FIG. 1 is shown without dish 10and decorative rocks 12, exposing the rotating bubble disperser 30 whichcomprises a vertical conduit 32 (having vertical gas exhaust 14), ahorizontal conduit 34 (having horizontal gas exhaust 36 at the distalend thereof), a T-joint 38, a first gear 40, and a second gear 42.

The conduits 32, 34 are rotatably connected via T-joint 38 to a sourcesuch as a bottle of propane 19, which is not shown in FIG. 3 but is asdetailed above with respect to FIG. 1, or other combustible gas via gashose 18, again as detailed above, so that gas traveling through gas hose18 (and the installed valves) also travels through conduits 32, 34. Therotating bubble disperser 30 is preferably rotatably connected oraffixed to the bowl 4 and/or dish 10, such that the vertical conduit 32passes through the dish 10 and/or rocks 12, and horizontal conduit 34can be rotated (about an axis parallel to vertical conduit 32)underneath the dish 10. The second gear 42 is connected to a motor (notshown) or other mechanical powering device, and engaged with first gear40 (which may be larger or smaller than second gear 42) so that themotor causes the rotating bubble disperser 30 to rotate via interactionbetween gears 40, 42. The motor may also be connected to and/orcontrolled by a computer processor such as processor 23, so that it canbe turned on or off, and its speed altered or varied, by thepreprogrammed processor and/or in response to sensors. As an examplesimilar to that given previously, a microphone could detect the beat ofmusic and the processor could cause the motor to spin synchronously orin response to the music.

The system 2 may include an electric ignition system, shownschematically at reference number 21 in FIG. 2, such as a sparkgenerator (which may include a spark plug, transformers, and so forth),a piezoelectric device, or any other means for igniting a flammable gas.For instance, an igniter may be located at or near the vertical gasexhaust 14 to allow ignition of the pilot light, and/or there may be oneor more igniters around the periphery of the bowl 4 corresponding towhere gas (that is emitted at horizontal gas exhaust 36) bubbles up andsurfaces from the liquid surface, to allow this gas to be ignited. Theelectrical igniter may be hand- or human-operated, allowing a user toignite the gas after the valve has been opened and gas is flowingthrough the rotating bubble disperser 30. Alternatively or in addition,a computer processor 23 may be connected to and programmed to cause theigniter to ignite according to certain conditions, such as if the fireextinguishes (a heat or light sensor may be connected to the processorto detect this issue), or at a certain time of day or according tocertain weather conditions.

In operation, the apparatus 2 may be turned on by opening an “on” valve(which may or may not be performed at least in part by a computerprocessor) of the flammable gas, allowing gas to flow through therotating bubble disperser 30. Further, the motor may be turned on(again, which may or may not be performed at least in part by a computerprocessor), causing the rotating bubble disperser 30 to rotate. Theigniter may be turned on so that gas that is released, such as fromvertical gas exhaust 14 (which may or may not provide for a pilotlight), can be ignited. As gas is emitted through the distal tip ofhorizontal gas exhaust 36, it bubbles upward through the liquid (water)and, when it reaches the surface, it is ignited with air by either orboth of the pilot light (burning at the center of the dish 10 viavertical gas exhaust 14) or heat from the burning of previous flammablegas bubbles. As the rotating bubble disperser 30 continues to rotate,the bubbles bubble upward toward the surface of the liquid in whatappears to be a circle or spiral, producing the appearance of burninggas “chasing” itself around the bowl 4 and rocks 12. The lights 16 maybe illuminated at the same time, and any aspect of the lights, therotating speed, the gas emission (and thus combustion) rate, and soforth may be adjusted manually and/or by the computer processor 23.

A length of the horizontal conduit 34 may be greater, less than, orapproximately the same as a radius of dish 10. If less, then bubblesemitted from horizontal gas exhaust 36 may contact and travel up theouter side of dish 10. Alternatively or in addition, the horizontalconduit 34 may be designed (such as at least partially out of a flexiblerubber or plastic) such that the horizontal gas exhaust 36 conforms to apredetermined shape or path. For instance, the dish 10 may be speciallyshaped, like as a star or heart or any other shape, and the horizontalgas exhaust 36 may travel along the periphery (e.g., via a track, via aspring-type force of a rubber tube pressing against the periphery,etc.), causing the “chasing fire” to be created in the shape of thepredetermined shape. Further, the horizontal conduit 34 need notactually be horizontal; this is merely a designation for explanation ofthe invention. Ultimately, the rotating bubble disperser 30 may bedesigned, shaped, or configured in any way to cause the path of gasbubbles to the liquid surface to take on any preferred path, design,shape, or display.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a second illustrated embodiment of apparatus102 for entertaining and producing a fire show comprises a bowl 104(which may as described with reference to bowl 4) having a lip 106(which may be as described with reference to lip 6), and a bubbledispersion plate 108 located preferably in the center of the bowl 104.The bowl 104 is filled with a liquid, and the second system 102preferably includes a dish and decorations (like dish 10 and rocks 12 inFIG. 1), which are not shown. Underneath the plate 108, flammable gas isbubbled, plumbed, or directed upward, and the plate 108 (which will bediscussed more with reference to FIG. 5) is configured to disperse thesebubbles in different paths, so that they bubble upward through theliquid and burn above the liquid in a somewhat random (or “dancing”)formation or display, as shown with the arrows emanating from dispersionplate in FIG. 4. Other features of the second system 102 (such as thesupport, ignition system, computer processor, lights, etc.) may besimilar to that disclosed with reference to first system 2.

Referring now to FIG. 5, the bubble dispersion plate 108 includes gascollection chamber 110, plural gas paths 112, path walls 114, andperipheral seals 116. The plate 108 is preferably, but need not be,circular in shape. The gas collection chamber 110 is a chamber in whichflammable gas can collect (from a source below) and then allow thepassage of gas to and through paths 112. In FIG. 5, the gas collectionchamber 110 is shown as a recess or concavity into which gas bubbles cancollect and congregate.

The gas paths 112 allow gas to travel from the gas collection chamber110 to the liquid surface via bubbling up through the liquid. There arepreferably at least five paths 112 (and preferably at least six, andmore preferably at least eight) because with fewer than five paths 112,it may be difficult to sustain combustion with an ongoing flame at theliquid surface. The paths 112 may but need not be spaced apart evenly.

Further, the bubbles should be sufficiently large, which implies andrequires that the path 112 dimensions should be sufficiently large. Inone aspect, they are preferably at least about ½ inch in cross sectionalwidth, and more preferably at least 1 inch in cross sectional width.Path walls 114 define the sides of gas paths 112 and contact (andpreferably seal) with the surface of the bowl 104. Peripheral seals 116are located between adjacent paths 112 and seal with the surface of bowl104, so that the only escape for flammable gas that has accumulated inthe gas collection chamber 110 is via gas paths 112 and bubbling upwardto the liquid surface.

In operation, the apparatus illustrated in FIG. 4 may be turned on byopening an “on” valve (which may or may not be performed at least inpart by a computer processor) of the flammable gas, allowing gas to flowinto bowl 104 underneath the plate 108 and into the gas collectionchamber 110. An electrical igniter may be turned on or activated so thatgas that is released from one or more of paths 112 can be ignited. Asgas is emitted from chamber 110 and through paths 112, it bubbles upwardthrough the liquid (water) and, when it reaches the surface, it isignited with air by either or both of a pilot light (which may beburning at the center of a dish or decorative display contained thereon)or heat from the burning of previous flammable gas bubbles. As bubblesrandomly emit from different paths 112, the bubbles rise upwardly towardthe surface of the liquid in what appears to be a random andunpredictable dance, producing the appearance of burning gas “dancing”around the bowl 104. The lights (if any) may be illuminated at the sametime, and any aspect of the lights, the gas emission (and thuscombustion) rate, and so forth may be adjusted manually and/or by acomputer processor.

In both embodiments, in order to ensure that previously combusting gasbubbles ignite subsequent bubbles, the size of the systems 2, 102 shouldbe appropriately limited. For instance, the length of horizontal conduit34 should be sufficiently short, such as less than 8 inches and morepreferably less than or about 5 inches, and the diameter of plate 108should be sufficiently small, such as less than 16 inches and morepreferably less than or about 10 inches.

Further, any controlling of the systems 2, 102 may be done manually orby a computer processor 23 via a remote control. For instance, aradiotransmitter may be used to instruct the system 2 to increase thespeed of rotating of the rotating gas disperser 30, the color orillumination of lights 16, and so forth.

In other embodiments, a moving or dancing flame or illumination can becreated by combining a moving flammable gas discharge with a containerof liquid. For instance, a “river” of water may flow around a bar,table, or other location. Within the river may be located a movableconduit through which flammable gas is emitted and bubbles up throughthe river and is ignited and burns on the water surface, producing achasing or dancing flame. The speed, direction, etc., of the movingconduit may be altered or varied manually or using a processor.

While the present invention has been described in terms of a preferredembodiment, it will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill that thespirit and scope of the invention is not limited to those embodiments,but extend to the various modifications and equivalents as defined inthe appended claims.

1. An apparatus for generating a flame above a surface of liquid,comprising: a container configured for holding liquid; a gas bubbledispenser in the container, said gas bubble dispenser having a first gasdistribution conduit that is movable relative to the container andconfigured for delivering gas out of a distal end of the conduit intoliquid held in the container in a predetermined pattern; a source ofcombustible gas attached to the gas bubble dispenser; and an ignitionsource for igniting gas when bubbles of gas burst at the surface of theliquid.
 2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the gas bubbledispenser is further defined by a second gas distribution conduit havinga distal tip through which gas flows and which is positioned above thesurface of the liquid.
 3. The apparatus according to claim 2 includingmeans for causing the first gas distribution conduit of the gas bubbledispenser to rotate relative to the container.
 4. The apparatusaccording to claim 3 wherein the distal end of the first gasdistribution conduit traces a path in a predetermined pattern.
 5. Theapparatus according to claim 4 wherein the path defines a circle.
 6. Theapparatus according to claim 5 including a circular dish held in thecontainer and spaced apart from a bottom surface of the container sothat said dish is positioned above said first gas distribution conduit,and wherein said distal end of said first gas distribution conduittraces a circle having a diameter that is smaller than the diameter ofsaid dish.
 7. The apparatus according to claim 4 wherein the distal endof the first gas distribution conduit traces a predetermined patternthat is not circular.
 8. The apparatus according to claim 3 wherein themeans for causing the gas bubble dispenser to rotate is defined by amotor connected to said gas bubble dispenser.
 9. The apparatus accordingto claim 2 wherein the second gas distribution conduit defines a pilotlight.
 10. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein movement of thefirst gas distribution conduit is under the control of a computerprocessor.
 11. An apparatus for generating a flame above a surface ofliquid, comprising: a container configured for holding liquid; a sourceof combustible gas configured for delivering gas into the container at agas entry point below the surface of the liquid; and a gas distributionplate positioned above the gas distribution point, said gas distributionplate defined by a gas distribution chamber that defines a chamber forreceiving gas from the gas source, and plural gas paths radiating fromsaid gas distribution chamber so that gas received in the gasdistribution chamber is routed into said gas paths and emitted from thegas paths at distal ends thereof into the liquid as bubbles.
 12. Theapparatus according to claim 11 wherein the gas distribution platefurther includes a seal around a peripheral edge thereof that defines agas-tight seal between the container and the gas distribution plate. 13.The apparatus according to claim 11 including an ignition source forigniting gas when bubbles of gas burst at the surface of the liquid. 14.The apparatus according to claim 11 in which the gas paths aredimensioned to control the size of gas bubbles that emit from the paths.15. A method of generating fire above the surface of a container ofliquid, comprising the steps of: a) providing a container of liquid; b)providing a gas bubble dispenser in the container, said gas bubbledispenser having a gas distribution tip positioned under the surface ofthe liquid; c) connecting the gas bubble dispenser to a source ofcombustible gas; d) causing gas to flow to the gas bubble dispenser sothat gas bubbles emit from the gas distribution tip; e) causing the gasdistribution tip to move in a predetermined pattern in the liquid so gasbubbles burst at the surface in the predetermined pattern; and f)igniting the gas at the surface of the liquid when bubbles of gasbubbles burst.
 16. The method according to claim 15 wherein thepredetermined pattern is defined by a circle.
 17. The method accordingto claim 15 wherein the predetermined pattern is non-circular.
 18. Themethod according to claim 15 wherein movement of the gas distributiontip is under the control of a computer processor.
 19. The methodaccording to claim 18 wherein movement of the gas distribution tip issynchronized with music.
 20. The method according to claim 19 includingthe step of causing lights to illuminate under the control of thecomputer processor and in synchronization with the music.